Most of us know by now that muscle is much heavier than fat. Good solid muscle, can be over twice as heavy as fat. Simply stepping on a scale to see how much we weigh, leaves a lot unsaid. More effective than trying to reach a certain weight, would be to try to reach a certain body fat percentage. Not all bodies are built the same, and therefore can’t be compared with eachother very well. It’s like comparing watermelons Peaches to plums. It doesn’t work. If some people tried to compete with those weighing down around 120 lbs, they would have to start chopping limbs off to do it.
An essential percentage of body fat for men is 3 – 5%, while for women it is 8 – 12%. A healthy amount would be a bit more, and the averages are above that. So, while women try desperately to peel off every ounce of fat, they can often lose too much and become skinny, but unhealthy.
There are many methods of measuring your body fat percentage. None of them are exact, but they give you a good idea. There is the Near-infrared interactance, where an infra-red light beam is sent into your bicep and muscle reflects it while your fat absorbs it. The device measure it and tells you your percentage. It’s safe and easy. There are also scale-like devices that test you electronically. These are simple and accurate. There is a skin-fold method, a height and circumference method, and several others.
Aside from stepping on the scale every day, check out your body fat percentage with any method. This will give you a better representation of how healthy you are.
Good luck with it. See you next time.
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